New Character Approaching!
by The Director 999
Summary: Is it possible for Love to bloom even on a battlefield? Samus X OC and Zelda X OC minor hints to Zelda X Link and Samus X Pit. Chapter 7 is up! Leave tons of reviews, I like reading what you have to say.
1. New Character Approaching!

Brawl – When the characters live together

By – The Director

Special guest - Joseph Thompson (O.C.)

Samus Aran

Current Age: 17

Height: 5' 8"

Gender: Female

Zelda Hyrule

Current Age: 17

Height: 5' 7"

Gender: Female

Joseph Thompson

Current Age: 16 ½

Height: 5' 8"

Gender: Male

Link was sleeping on the couch in Zelda's part of the ship. Gannondorf sat on the main bridge along with Captain Falcon, Kirby, Ike and Meta Knight. Zelda was also sleeping in her part of the ship. Samus was playing Metroid Prime 2 on Gamecube while she waited for a new fight.

Pit ran to the microphone on the bridge. "A new fighter is approaching in the Hyrule Forest! Fighters, get ready!" Samus paused her game, leapt up, and grabbed her chozo armor. Link grabbed his sword and shield, still drowsy, however, and Marth grabbed his headband and sword. The three ran to the main deck and decided who would go.

Several minutes later…

"Ha! Scissors! I win!" Samus put on her helmet and leapt out of the Halberd as it landed. She looked around and ran for the master sword pedestal. As soon as she got there, she saw a kid lying on a bench, sleeping. He wore a loose tie and a hoodie, and had a few beer stains on his clothes. "This is the challenger? He's a kid." She poked him. "Hey, kid, get up. Hey!" The kid stretched, rubbed his eyes, and got up.

"H'llo there. Who're you?" Samus seemed a bit shocked by the kid. One second, he's dead asleep; next second, he's ready to go.

'He's like Jigglypuff, sorta.' Samus thought to herself. "Oh!" She scratched her helmet. "I'm Samus Aran. Were you the challenger?" The kid nodded.

"Name's Joey. Joey Thompson. You're gonna fight me?"

"Yup."

"Awright. That's your funeral." Joey back flipped onto the platform behind him and pulled a gun out of his pocket. "Let's battle!" Samus smiled through her mask and jumped to the platform above her.

"3…2…1… GO!" The announcer yelled as the fight started. Samus began charging her gun as Joey disappeared into thin air.

"Where'd he…"

"Behind you!" Samus turned around and saw Joey hold the gun up to Samus. The group of other brawlers watched from the ship's monitor.

"Dude, Samus is getting owned by that kid." Everyone turned around and saw Link with a beer in his hand.

When everyone looked back at the screen, Joey was half-dead, and Samus was in her Zero Suit armor.

"She must've used a final smash." Gannondorf said, partially under his breath.

"Gwahaha! This'll be good for Youtube!" Bowser said as he held up a camera.

Joey held his gun up, shaking, but then collapsed on the ground. Samus walked up to him. She bent down and held her hand down to him.

"C'mon, I won't bite." Joey laughed and stood up. The two walked back to the Halberd as the crew set down the door for them to walk in. Joey stretched, as his wounds seemed to disappear.

"Nice." Link said, still drunk.

"It's what we do, I'm fine." Samus said, looking around.

"Hey," Marth said as he walked up to Joey. "We should spar sometime. You look like a pretty damn tough fighter.

"Well, I… um…" Joey looked around. Is fighting all these people do? "Sure, I guess so." Meta-Knight looked at a clipboard.

"Hmm… the only vacant bed we have is in Samus' room."

"You don't mind, do you?" Samus asked, looking at Joey.

"No, I'm fine with that." Joey said, blushing.

"It's settled, then." Samus said, clapping her hands. She had one of those 'cute' looks on her face. The kind that says, 'Hell yea!'

Joey had a bit of a hard time falling asleep that night. He was sleeping somewhere completely unfamiliar to him, anyway. It was weird, though. He could normally sleep anywhere. He stared at the ceiling for ages wondering why he couldn't sleep.

The next day, Samus opened the small closet-like door to Joey's small room. In the night, he had tacked up posters of video games and some bands. This included NiGHTS, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, and Reel Big Fish. Samus also saw that Joey had spray painted parts of the ceiling. She moved her head until she saw large marks of scrapes and scars, in the shapes of letters.

'IV, X, X, VI' Samus couldn't understand anything on the ceiling, questioning it out loud. This woke Joey up from his very light sleep. He hit his head against the bookshelf he had placed right next to his bed.

"Can I help you?" He said in a bit of a monotonous tone.

"Oh, no, I… um… breakfast is ready." Joey pulled the pillow over his head.

"Ugh… Already?" Samus giggled.

"Alright, I'll bring you some cereal and a glass of orange juice, alright?"

"Don't trouble yourself. I'll be up in a few minutes." Joey adjusted his alarm for five minutes ahead of the current time. "Go ahead. Save me a seat and I'll be there in a bit." Samus nodded and closed the door behind her.

As Samus sat down at the large table, she found that she was one of the last ones there. Most everyone else had left. Pit and Snake were still eating, Pit purposefully waiting for Samus. As she got there, Pit sat down right next to Samus.

"Hey, Samus, you doing anything later today?" Samus nodded.

"Yeah, why?" Samus said, with food still in her mouth.

"Oh, nothing, never mind." Pit walked back to his original seat. He sighed as Joey walked in.

"Hiya, Joey!" Samus said, cheerfully. Joey waved, yawned, and grabbed a bit of food. He sat down next to Samus and drooped his head. "What's up?"

"Lack of sleep." Samus thought to herself a bit.

"That's too bad. I was hoping you and I could go see a movie." Pit overheard and felt his anger rise. Joey woke up a tad more.

"Sure." Samus nodded, got up from the table, and set her dishes in the sink. Joey finished his breakfast as Meta-Knight started to talk over the loudspeaker.

"Will all newcomers please report to the main deck for assignments." Joey stretched and walked off to the deck. A few minutes later, Joey, Wolf, and Jigglypuff arrived on the main bridge. "Today, you receive your jobs."

Everyone had mixed opinions about that. "Joey, you will be in charge of stock and items." Joey signaled the traditional military salute and walked off. "Wolf, you will be the next combat advisor. And Jigglypuff, you will be the punching bag."

Jigglypuff sighed. Wolf showed Joey how the directory worked. Joey arrived in the item deck in a few minutes. He saw a few sticky notes on the computer.

'New item advisor,

We will need the following:

100 explosive crates

8 barrels

10 assist trophies

Thank you.'

Joey cracked his knuckles and lit a cigarette. "Let's do it to it."

In a few hours, the crates appeared by the teleporter. Meta Knight walked into the item deck, seeing Joey half-asleep on the computer.

"Joey, about the crates you ordered."

"Oh yeah, we got a price cut if we ordered 1000."

"There are more than 1000." Joey seemed puzzled.

"How many are there?"

"100,000." Joey walked away slowly. He stepped into the locker room, and saw Zelda's robes draped over the edge of one of the showers. Joey smiled, walked up to the stall, and tapped on the door.

"Hey, Zelda." Joey heard a bit of laughing..

"Joey? Seriously?"

"The one and only. How y' doin'?" Zelda smiled.

"Great, thanks. Geez, I haven't seen you in years. How've you been?" The water stopped. "Can you toss a towel over the wall?" Joey complied and waited for her to step out of the cubicle.

"I'm fine. Hyrule's crap no that you left.." Zelda giggled.

"You sure as hell haven't changed one bit." Joey laughed back.

"I see you died your hair brown." Zelda looked at her hair. It was still wet.

"Well, I-" Joey cut her off.

"I think it looks a lot better. Then again, you've always been the fashionable one. The kingdom's gone crazy without you; they really miss you. Can't blame them." Zelda blushed. She attempted to cover it up by laughing.

"I'll try to remember that. Now, shouldn't you be somewhere?" Joey checked his watch.

"How'd you know?" Joey smiled and kissed Zelda on the cheek on his way out. "Good to see you. Later!" Zelda stood in place and then spun around smiling and laughing. Joey looked around in Samus' room. He couldn't find her anywhere. He stepped into his room and got ready.

Zelda continued to hop through the Halberd. Samus bumped into her on the way back to her room. "Geez, Zel, watch out next time, kay?" Zelda maintained a happy attitude, even in pain.

"Sorry, Samus! Just kinda giddy, I guess!" Samus was still confused.

"How so this time? Did they finally make Pokémon like it was in its glory days?" Zelda shook her head. "Did you get a raise on your paycheck?" Zelda shook her head again.

"Guess again!"

"Third time's the charm." Both girls giggled. "Did you meet an old childhood friend who you haven't seen in years?" Zelda stopped smiling.

"Damn. You're good." She gained her giddy attitude again. "Wanna know who it is? Huh?" Samus sighed.

"Alright, who?" Zelda burst into a huge smile.

"My best friend, Joey!" Samus' attitude faded. She looked Zelda in the eyes.

"Joey Thompson?" Zelda nodded.

"Uh-huh. Why? You know him?" Samus nodded slowly.

"He's my roommate." Zelda's smile lessened.

"Aw, lucky you. He used to be my best friend. Back in…" Zelda let her mind wander off. Samus shook her head.

"Anything helpful about him I should know about him?" Zelda thought to herself for a bit.

"Don't go in his room, keep spiders and crabs away from him, don't yell at him, he hates Valentines Day and… um… I think that's it." Samus sighed.

"What about what he _likes_?" Zelda laughed.

"Romance movies books and stories on , chocolate, cigarettes, Manga, everything from the 80's and 90's, rain, and spending time on his own." Samus looked at Zelda.

"He likes romance movies and being alone? That's not a good combo." Zelda shrugged.

"Oh well. He's my best friend. I don't see how it affects you, Sammy." Zelda's smile widened as she walked off. Samus felt like she had been told off. She ran back to her bedroom as fast as she could. She saw Joey sitting on his bed, curled in a ball. He had a loosened tie around his neck.

"Hi, Samus." Samus looked at the clock. It was thirty minutes after the movie was scheduled to end. Samus ran up to Joey.

"Joey, I'm so sorry. I just got caught up and… well, I… I'm just so sorry." Joey sat up and walked out of the room.

"It's alright. Just leave me alone." Samus tried to catch up. Joey vanished into thin air. Samus ran around the ship trying to find Joey. She heard talking coming from Zelda's room. Samus cracked the door open a tad and saw Zelda holding Joey's hands in hers. Samus listened to their conversation.

"-It's alright, Joey. There are other girls out there. She didn't mean to be late, I know it." Joey drooped his head.

"Yeah, I guess so." There was a pause. "Hey Zelda, who was your first crush?" Zelda blushed.

"Well, I'm pretty sure you already know it was Link. That's obvious. But then…" Zelda caught herself. "So Joey, what about you? Who was your first crush?"

Joey looked Zelda in the eyes. He let a small smile stretch across his face. "I'm pretty sure you already know who." Zelda turned red. They both laughed a bit as Zelda hugged Joey from behind.

"Well, I'll be sure that it doesn't happen to you again." Joey's smile widened as he kissed Zelda across the mouth. She felt faint and rested her head on Joey's shoulder. "Good night." Joey heard Zelda whisper.

"You too, Zel." Zelda smiled and went to sleep. Samus walked off to her room. Pit tried talking to her, but just got pushed away. She looked in the emptiness of Joey's room. She sat down on her desk and started to think; one thing she did ever too much.

The next morning, Zelda woke up early. She saw Joey sleeping on the chair in her room. She walked over and shook him gently.

"Joey? You awake?" Joey nodded, half-asleep. He sat up and rubbed his eyes.

"Heya, Zel. Mornin' already?" Zelda nodded.

"Come on, we're late for breakfast." Joey felt through his pockets. He grabbed his box of cigarettes. "Joey, please don't smoke before breakfast." Joey tossed the cigarettes into a trashcan.

"I wasn't gonna." Zelda looked back at him.

"You were… you… you're quitting?" Joey nodded.

"It was just something to fill that void. I've got a better occupant, now." Zelda smiled and hugged Joey.

"You're cheesy, but adorable." Joey tried to worm out of her grip.

"Please don't call me adorable." Zelda laughed.

"You're so sweet, Joey!" Joey chuckled.

"Well, at least someone thinks so."

End – Part 1


	2. Return to Hyrule

Return to Hyrule

~In a land of fighting, friendship worms its way in. This is the world of Brawl.~

Joey walked through the Halberd. He stopped by Meta-Knight's office as he walked off. He knocked on the door and walked in. "Meta-Knight? You here?" The Spanish accent rung out from the chair.

"Ay?" Joey handed Meta-Knight a folded envelope. "What is this?" Joey sighed.

"My resignation letter." Meta-Knight stared at the boy. Joey lit a cigarette and held the box to Meta-Knight. "Want one? I need to burn through the last box, and it's better if I don't have them all."

"No thank you. But I do want to know why you are quitting." Joey shrugged.

"I'm done here. I've said my hellos and goodbyes and I want to leave." Meta-Knight looked down at his desk. Joey sighed. "I'll stay until we reach Hyrule, but I'm leaving there." Meta-Knight looked back at Joey.

"I still want you to stay with us. We'll take a detour to Hyrule, and then you can decide if you want to leave or not." Joey nodded.

"Thank you, Meta-Knight." Joey saluted and walked out. He took one last puff and threw the remains of the cigarette into a trash can. He walked off and soon arrived in his old bedroom. He began to take down the old posters hanging around and tossed them in his small suitcase. He stared up at the ceiling.

"IV, X, X, VI" He sighed and painted over it, giving the room back its pale white color. Joey grabbed the remainder of his things and set them on the bed. "I'll be gone in a manner of days. Back to my shitty old life." He sighed. "Fan-fuckin'-tastic." Samus peeked her head in and knocked on the wall.

"Joey? Can I come in?" Joey sighed.

"Why not? This room will be yours again in a few days.. You want me to paint it a different color while I'm still here?" Samus shook her head.

"No, nothing like that." She took a few steps closer. "Joey... about last night..." Joey shook his head.

"Samus, I don't wanna hear it. I'm leaving in a few days, nothing you say is gonna make me change my mind." Samus drooped her head.

"Oh..." Joey felt a tear hit his hand. He certainly wasn't crying. He looked over to Samus and saw her hunched up, silently weeping. Joey sighed and let his hand run across the Zero-suit.

"Samus... please don't... Samus... Sammy? Hey?" She couldn't hear him. He sighed, stood up and began to walk to the door. He stopped and thought to himself before he stepped out of the closet-like room.

Joey walked to the item shipping room. He typed up the shipping address and waited by the teleporters. It would take a few days, but it would be worth the wait. Joey checked his watch. He was late. He stepped away for a moment, wrote a note and stuck it on the monitors. He walked off to the dorms and prepared himself for another sleepless night.

The next morning...

Joey saw a smiling face in his peripheral vision the next morning. He turned over and saw Samus at the edge of his bed. Joey smirked. "Can I help you?" Samus' smile widened as she hugged Joey.

"Morning, Joey!" Joey smiled.

"You sure seem happy." Samus nodded. "What Changed?" Samus shrugged.

"Well, during the last few days here, I thought we could just bury the hatchet. Whaddya say?" Joey smiled and held out his hand.

"What the hell. Why not?" Samus pulled on Joey's arm and embraced him in a hug. Joey looked at the watch on Samus' arm and bolted for the door. "Crap. I'm late."

"When are you gonna be back?" Joey waved and ran off. Samus looked down and picked up a rose. She held the rose to her face and breathed in the flowery scent. "Soon?" She walked back into her room and shut the door behind her.

Joey checked the porthole. They were above Angel Island. Hyrule was two days away. Joey smiled and walked to the teleporters. There was a package with his name on it. "Going away." Joey picked up the package. "Leaving today." He tore it open. "You've gotta find a brand new hero." He checked the contents to make sure they were still intact.

He smiled and walked off to the dining hall, just in time for breakfast. Joey looked around. Like always, there were very few people. But one was missing from the picture.

Joey walked back to Samus' room, seeing that she was asleep on the floor. Joey shook her awake. "Want me to bring you some cereal and orange juice?" Samus laughed.

"I'll be right there." Joey smiled and walked back to the dining hall. Zelda sat in a nearby chair, awaiting Joey.

"Hiya, Zel." Zelda turned and smiled at Joey.

"Did you say your goodbyes yet?" Joey nodded.

"You sure you don't wanna come back to Hyrule with me?" Zelda shook her head.

"I think I'll stay here. Are you sure that you don't wanna stay?" Joey sighed. "Samus is gonna miss you." Joey let a single tear run off his cheek.

"Well..." Zelda watched as Joey sat up and left.

"You never change." Zelda said to herself, smiling.

Joey grabbed his plate and walked along the aisle. Peach popped up behind him. "You feeling alright?" Joey shook his head.

"I don't want to talk about it." Peach shook Joey's shoulder.

"C'mon! What is it?" Joey remained silent. "Is it about Samus?" Joey set his plate back on the tray. He turned and walked back to the breakfast table.

"I'm not hungry." Peach sighed.

"C'mon, Joey. You can talk to me!" Joey sat back down next to Zelda. She smiled.

"So nothing I say will make you stay?" Joey shook his head.

"As soon as we drop back in Hyrule, I'm leaving and going back to the ranch." Zelda's smile faded. She tried to bring herself to the illusion of happiness. As long as she looked the part, she could play it.

"Joey..." Joey looked to his side, still looking sad. "No matter what, Samus and I will miss you more than Malon. Especially..." Zelda caught herself again. "Come on, Joey you can't leave." Joey looked back at his empty plate, his stomach grumbling.

"If you'll miss me as much as you say, why don't you come back with me?" Zelda's smile, albeit fake, vanished.

"Joey, I can't. I mean..." Joey looked back at Zelda.

"What? Why can't you?" Zelda cried.

"I can't bear to see you go..." Joey stared at Zelda. "Joey, I love you, I don't want to see you go again. Please, just stay." Joey sighed.

"I just don't see why you can't come back to Hyrule with me."

"Because if I go, Link follows us." Another piece of the puzzle that made up Joey's mind was put into place. "And if he goes, Ganon goes. And if Ganon's there, nothing will be peaceful ever again. Here, fighting and war aren't forced." Joey sighed.

"I get it." He smiled. "So I guess if I go home, you'll follow." Zelda nodded, through bursts of tears. "If you go, you get kidnapped." Joey pecked Zelda's cheek. "And I certainly can't let that happen." Zelda hugged Joey as her tears slowly shyed to nothing.

"Joey, please don't leave." Joey smiled.

"I won't. Don't worry." Joey kissed Zelda, slowly stopping her crying. Zelda wiped her eyes.

"I'm sorry." She sniffled. "That was embarrassing." Joey handed her a tissue.

"Don't worry about it." Joey checked his pocket watch. "Dammit." Zelda looked up at Joey. "I'm really sorry Zel, but I have to go." Zelda smiled as she kissed Joey goodbye.

"Just remember," Zelda said. "I'm always here for you." Joey smiled as he ran for the teleporter room. He grabbed the box with his name on it and ran back to his room. Samus sat at the couch, waiting for Joey's return.

"Hey, Joey!" Joey waved and ran to his room.

"Sorry, can't talk right now, I gotta do something!" Joey locked his door behind him. He grabbed wrapping paper from his small closet and began covering the cardboard box. He grabbed a stick-on bow and popped it on top of the box. He sighed as he unlocked his door and saw Samus standing right outside. Joey ran into her as he walked out of his room, not seeing her.

"What's the rush?" Joey smiled as he leaned forward and kissed Samus.

"Here." Joey handed Samus the box. She opened it slowly, careful not to break anything. She pulled out an object covered in bubble wrap. As she unwrapped the object, a smile beamed across her face. It was a large sketchpad, tied to a photo of Joey and Samus.

"Where did you get this?" Joey shrugged.

"I ordered my photos and a sketch book at the same time." Samus smiled as she kissed Joey.

"Thanks." Joey smiled.

"That kiss was all the thanks I need." Samus laughed.

"You are such a dork." Joey smiled.

"Yeah, I know." Joey leaned in for one last kiss...

~The following day~

Joey walked into Meta-Knights office. Meta-Knight turned around. "Ay? Have you came to your final decision?" Joey nodded. He picked up his resignation note and tore it in half.

"Yeah, I'm staying." Samus and Zelda, standing outside the door, began to cheer and dance. As Joey stepped out of the door, he felt the two lunge on him, smothering him with hugs and "thank you"'s. Joey smiled.

"I know I'm gonna love it here."


	3. Welcome to the Subspace!

Welcome to the Subspace Emissary!

Samus and Joey, Part 3 - Subspace, Part 1

Joey was asleep in the chairs on the bridge of the Halberd. He woke up to a quiet beeping. He looked to his side to see they had arrived in the preset destination. He checked his watch. It was around noon. Joey grabbed the microphone and said in his best announcer voice: "Attention Brawlers! We have arrived at the coliseum. Please take a seat and wait for the ship to come to a complete stop before moving around. Be aware luggage may have shifted during the flight while opening the overhead compartments." He heard clicking from the other side. He pressed the intercom button. "Thompson."

"Get off the P.A.!" Said Marth, operating one of the many other intercoms. Joey released the button, stood, stretched, and headed back to his room. Samus was asleep on her chair, wiimote strapped to her arm. Joey shook her awake.

"Samus! Wake up, c'mon!" She cracked her eyes open.

"What?" She said, lazily. Joey motioned to the door.

"C'mon, we gotta go. The tournament's today." Samus looked up, still dazed.

"Do we have to? I'm tired." She walked to her bed and pulled the covers to her neck. Joey held up the tickets.

"You don't have to fight, we're just watching. I got front-row seats." Samus smiled.

"Will there be food?" Joey nodded. "Alright, but you owe me one." Joey laughed.

"I'm paying for everything, I think by now you'd owe me one." Samus giggled.

"Maybe." Joey ran to his small closet-like room and changed his clothes. As he walked outside, he saw Samus in her Zero Suit. "Well?" Joey looked closely.

"What's different about it?" Samus smiled.

"Nothing, just testing you." She grabbed Joey's arm and ran out the door. "C'mon, let's go!"

~The Coliseum~

Samus waded through the crowd to their seats. Joey handed her a roll of bills.

"That's $50. If you need any more, let me know." Samus smiled, seductively.

"You think that's enough? There's more than food. There are souvenirs, plushies, key chains, and plenty more." Joey handed her another roll.

"Seventy-Five. No more, I need to eat, too." Samus pecked Joey's cheek as she ran off. Joey checked his watch. "1:55. She's gonna miss the fight." The announcer lowered the scoreboard, ready to start the countdown. Mario walked along the pathway and stood on his platform. He waved as the crowd cheered. Kirby stepped out on the other side, also getting cheered on. Joey clapped his hands together. "Bring it on."

Samus took a bite of her hot dog, looking at the screen in the bar. She held a small Kirby plush under her arm, and a bag of merchandise by her feet. She grabbed her soda as the announcer began the countdown. The crowd chanted along with him.

"5... 4... 3... 2..." Joey leaned forward in his seat. Samus leaned in on the table, seeing everyone else around her doing the same.

"ONE!"

The fight ended quickly. Mario tapped the Kirby statue, reviving him. He held out his hand, allowing Kirby to stand. As Kirby took Mario's hand, everything grew dark. The clouds turned a dark red as the sky turned a pitch black. Airships started to show up from nowhere and began to bomb everything. Joey stood up in his seat. "Samus?! Samus, where are you!" Joey ran around the stadium now beginning to shake. Joey heard a scream come from a level above him. He saw a large Piranha Plant fly to the center stage, holding two cages. One held Peach, and the other...

"Zelda..." Joey saw Mario and Kirby start to fight Petey, but losing. Joey snapped a scope to his pistol and took aim. Petey fell to the ground faster than humanly possible. Joey hopped to the bridge and tried to snap the cage door open. Zelda peered through the bars.

"Joey..." Time froze. All that existed were Joey and Zelda. Nothing else mattered. Joey stuck his hands through the bars.

"Zelda, I'm sorry." Zelda nodded.

"It's alright. Go find her." Zelda held Joey's hand through the bar.

"Zelda... I will find a way to get you out of here. Just stay alive." Zelda nodded. Joey hesitated "I love you." Zelda smiled.

"I figured as much. Now go, she's waiting." Joey nodded and ran off, shedding a tear. He stormed into the bar, careful not to step on any broken glass.

"Samus?" Joey looked under a table. He saw Samus a few tables away, hunched in fear. Joey crawled to her side. "Samus?" He said softly. Samus looked up and hugged Joey.

"Joey..." Joey held her close.

"It's alright. C'mon, the Halberd's out back." Samus nodded and stood. Joey grabbed her hand and ran off to the garage. Samus ran ahead of Joey, wanting to get to the Halberd as soon as possible. As Joey ran behind her, the floor split. "Samus!" Joey tilted as he fell forward. Samus held out her hand, hoping to catch him. She missed him by an inch. Joey fell into the hole in the ground, seeing Samus' worried face.

~Hours later~

Joey woke up in a small grassy field. He saw a small tint of green in the edge of his vision. As he sat up, he saw Luigi by his side.

"Joey, you're alive!" Joey nodded.

"Hey, weegie. Where are we?" Luigi shrugged.

"I wish I knew. After the stadium collapsed, we were scattered everywhere. My brother's with another group of us trying to bring us all back together. Peach got away with Kirby, but Zelda was turned into a statue and abducted." Joey felt his head drop to his knees.

"Goddammit! Why do I have to keep losing?" First Samus, now this. Joey punched the ground, making a small hole. Luigi ran to his side and picked him up.

"C'mon, we gotta find everyone else!" Joey turned and walked away.

"Sorry, you go alone. I'll find them by myself." Luigi trembled.

"I can't go alone! I'm scared!" Joey tossed Luigi a small green mushroom.

"If worst comes to worst, eat that. By now, I shouldn't have to tell you that, but live and learn." Luigi looked at it.

"Where did you get this?" Joey held up a map.

"You left it at your mansion. This map was used as a placemat at the breakfast table" Luigi looked back and forth between the mushroom and Joey.

"Okay! I've gotta be strong! I'll find Mario by myself!" Joey nodded and walked to Death Mountain. "Wait, where are you going?" Joey pointed to the top of the volcano.

"I'm going to look out from the top of Death Mountain. If I can see the Halberd, they can see me. They'll pick me up, and then I can look for Samus." Luigi nodded.

"Okay. It's Weegie time!" Joey nodded as he walked into the fiery pits of hell.

~Halberd, prison~

Zelda looked out through the bars. She missed it all. She missed her bedroom, now taken by the pirates who stole the ship. She missed her friends; all who were trying to get back together. But most of all, she missed Joey. She began to cry.

~Halberd, storage~

Samus peeked out from behind a box. The halls were clear. She ran behind another set of cover. As she looked out, she saw a cardboard box move across the floor. Thinking it was nothing, she ran past it and to her next cover. She peered out and saw several robots conversing. "Mark and Execute." She flipped the corner and blasted them both, with deadly accuracy. She ran down the hall, hoping no one had heard the explosion.

She looked out the window. They were above the bomb factory. Samus tied her hair up, opened the door, grabbed a parachute, and leapt. She landed delicately on the landing block for planes and helicopters. No one saw her leave the Halberd or enter the factory.

~Death Mountain Trail~

Joey continued the long ascent. His watch told him he had been climbing for an hour, but it felt like five. Joey climbed over the last pile of rocks and landed in the crater at the top, sealed off so no one would fall through. Joey stood and looked over the edge. In the distance, he saw a small speck fall from the Halberd and onto the bomb factory. Joey pulled out his binoculars and looked at the speck.

"Samus…" Joey pulled out his Ocarina and played a tune. A duck came flying up the side of the mountain. Joey ran down to meet it halfway. Joey sat on top of the duck and flew off to the factory.

~The grassy meadow~

Luigi walked along the pathway until he found a coin on the ground as he bent down to pick it up, he saw King DeDeDe drive by. As the king spotted Luigi, he pulled out a gun-like device. Luigi looked at the device in awe as the king fired it. An arrow shot out to Luigi and turned him to a trophy. King DeDeDe grabbed Luigi and tossed him to the back of the truck.

~Halberd, Prison~

Zelda looked through her pockets. She found a small piece of paper. She whistled as a bird flew from one of the rafters. She pulled a pen from her pocket and began to write. As she finished, she handed the paper to the bird. She held up a photo to the bird as it flew out the open hatch. Zelda whimpered. "Please find him."

~Bomb factory~

Samus ran along the halls, utilizing all her stealth skills. She blasted the robots as they stormed in, leaving nothing alive. As she cracked open one door, she saw Pikachu, as a generator. She tapped some buttons and freed it. As they walked along, Samus opened another door along the way. She saw her chozo suit inside. She saw Pikachu run in first, only to be snapped up by a shadow. Samus ran to the chozo charger and grabbed the suit. She aimed the cannon at the shadow and blasted it, letting go of Pikachu. She grabbed the mouse as it fell to the ground.

What she was unaware of was the large shadow rising from the ground, lurking behind her.

~Outside the factory~

The duck landed on the roof. Joey peered through the glass. He pushed the glass open and aimed his gun inside. He climbed along the ceiling and slid down to the floor. "Hello?" Joey held his gun, ready to kill anything. Joey looked past a corner and shot two robots. As he closely examined them, they were already destroyed. Joey positioned the hands of the robots to point up. "Now I know if I'm going in circles."

Joey kicked down a small door, leading to a closet-like room. He saw a cardboard box on the ground. As he looked at it, he saw it shift. Joey leapt back and clicked the safety. He saw the box suddenly stop. He walked closer. "Snake?" The box turned around. "You seen Samus?" The box shook back and forth. Joey sighed. "Alright. Keep careful, don't be seen." Joey chuckled. "Not that I should have to tell this to the legendary Solid Snake." He scanned the shelves and grabbed two grenades before walking out.

~Bomb Factory, Generator room~

Samus holstered her gun. The shadows crept closer and closer. As they leapt up, Pikachu shocked them, alerting Samus that she was no longer alone. "Thanks." She said. Pikachu scratched it's ears.

"Pika!" The shadow stood, mimicking Samus. It faded and reappeared as a Chozo suited warrior, much like Samus. She blasted the head off with her cannon before the creature drew close enough. As she checked the remains, she pulled off the helmet. It took the shape of Joey's face. Samus felt a clenching in her stomach as she stood and walked away. She felt a tear run down her cheek as she walked out the door.

~Bomb Factory, Halls~

Joey peered around the corner, seeing two more robots. He marked the light and fired, spraying glass onto the scene. One robot collapsed, the other activating NV sensors. Joey peered through the small scope and shot is between the eyes. The robot fell to the ground, motionless. Joey flipped the arms up and walked along the hall. Joey heard an explosion come from the room to his side. He looked at the glass of the door. There was a small hole, just big enough for one's arm. He reached through and unlocked the door from the inside.

Joey kicked the door in and held his gun out, waiting for something to move. He peered through the scope and switched to Heat. He didn't see anything. As he walked in, he heard a muffle come from the desk. He saw a person tied up, barely breathing. He untied the handkerchief around the man's mouth. "What is it?" The man breathed heavily.

"Intruders. Dark, shadowy fellers." Joey smiled, annoyed.

"Anything else?" The man looked at the TV in the corner.

"The cameras are showing an armored fighter blasting everything. I don't think they're friendly." Joey holstered his gun.

"I'll have a chat with him. Then we'll talk friendly." He ran out the hole in the wall that the blast had caused. He saw a small light in the distance. His instincts told him to run to it. As he arrived at the source, he saw a light bulb hanging from it's socket. The lights were off, yet the windows were cracked enough to see a light switch. As Joey flipped it, he found a large supply of ammo. He grabbed grenades and a small knife.

"Seems easy." Joey took a few practice swings. He saw a box of throwing knives, but decided not to. He heard a chirping come from his pocket. He took out his Codec and checked the frequency. "Snake?" Snake's voice rang in from the other line.

"Joey, have you found Samus yet?" Joey shook his head.

"No, not yet." Snake smiled.

"I just found a few files. These people keep records of all of us. I guess Meta-Knight had some connections with this place before he took over the Halberd. You have a file of your own, here." Joey was shocked.

"What's it say?" Snake read the paper on top.

"It has your frequency number, personal information, but no background. Instead, they put in some roman numerals. As far as these people are convinced, you were born and given a Codec." Joey sighed a sigh of relief.

"Good. Is there anything on Samus?" Snake nodded.

"Yeah. Her Frequency is 129.64" Joey nodded. "It also has a few interesting files on her that I'm pretty sure you didn't know. You want me to send them to you?" Joey nodded.

"Alright." Snake signed off. Almost as if on cue, Joey got an e-mail. As Joey opened it, he felt a sensation of shock. "Interesting." He shut the Codec off and walked into the halls.

~Bomb Factory, Halls~

Samus heard her Codec chirp. She saw Joey's face appear by the number. "Joey!" She took off her helmet. "Are you alright? Thank God you're alive! Where are you?" Joey remained silent. "What's wrong?" Joey broke the silence.

"Samus, have you been truthful about everything you've told me?" Samus blushed.

"Of course. Why do-" Joey held up a file he printed.

"This is your private file, written by Meta-Knight, based on info you provided." He sent a copy to Samus. She read the e-mail slowly.

"Oh... that." Joey nodded. Samus sighed. "Joey, we all have secrets. And what about those numbers you painted on the ceiling?" Joey looked at the face in the Codec.

"I'll tell you later. If we make it out alive." Samus slowly nodded. "You can't bring back the dead, Samus." She whimpered.

"Please... don't die." Joey forced a nod.

"Right. You... you too." Samus smiled, as if to say 'thank you'. She signed off. She leaned against the wall.

"At least he's okay. I just..." She hunched over. "He shouldn't have had to learn about things like that. Not now." She felt a tear run down her cheek. "I'm sorry, Joey. I didn't know he was your uncle..."

Part 3 - End


	4. Sunday, Bloody Sunday

Samus & Joey; Part 4

Sunday Bloody Sunday

~Subspace Bomb Factory~

Samus and Pikachu walked along the pathway to the airfield. Suddenly, a loud moaning erupted from the grating. Samus aimed her cannon at the walls. Suddenly, Ridley burst through, destroying everything. As he spotted Samus, he grabbed her and tossed her in the air. Pikachu was left behind. Samus blasted at Ridley's hands, forcing him to let her go. As she fell to earth, Ridley by her side, she aimed her cannon.

~Bomb Factory, Halls.~

Joey blasted the robots in his way, not bothering to mark his place. _If they're dead, I must've been here before._ He thought to himself. He shot at a door, causing it to pop off its hinges. The door fell forward, into a pit, seemingly bottomless. As Joey stepped to the side, he saw a dragon fall in front of him, soon followed by a thin figure in Chozo armor. "Samus..."Joey ran to the edge of the door. "Samus!" he yelled down. He saw the figure look up and give him a nod. He smiled and leapt down after her.

Samus ran up Ridley's back, blasting him with cannon shots. She ran to his mouth and blasted a shot down his throat. Joey dove and landed on Ridley's tail. "Over here, you pink-scaled bitch!" Ridley turned around and swatted at Joey. He leapt back and shot at his eyes, blinding Ridley. It grasped its eyes and fell to the ground. Samus dove towards Joey.

"Ready?" She and Joey aimed their guns and blasted at Ridley. "Go!" Joey floated upwards under the pressure of the blast. Samus grabbed his hands and pulled him down as they hit the ground. Joey held his hand out as Samus clapped it. She called Pikachu and walked to the exit. She started to talk to Joey on her way out. "So..."

"So what?" Samus laughed.

"You know. Where have you been? I was looking all over for you." Joey shrugged.

"I've just been wandering. Luigi found me in... oh dear." Samus stopped.

"What?" Joey froze.

"I forgot about Luigi! He's stuck out there, we have to find him!" Samus shook her head. She grabbed Joey by his shoulders.

"No! You can't!" Joey was puzzled. "I just got you back, I'm not going to let you leave again!" Joey tried to keep a straight face, biting his lip as not to cry.

"Samus..." Joey nodded. "Alright. He has a mushroom, he should be fine." Joey started to move again. "So, where do we go now?" Samus thought to herself.

"We should find everyone else. The team needs to be back together if we want to stop the invasion." Joey nodded.

"Alright. Where do we start?" Samus looked around.

"This seems like a great place to start. We'll disable the bombs and meet up with the others." Joey nodded.

"Okay."

~Halberd~

Snake unhooked the cages, letting the Princesses free. "You stay here, I'll scout ahead." As Snake left, Zelda grabbed a ruby from her pocket. Sheik blasted the doors open, allowing her and Peach to escape.

"We don't need a man's help to do a job like this." Sheik ran across the deck to the main bridge.

~Bomb Factory~

Samus kicked in the door, seeing the bombs stacked and ready to ship out. She motioned for Joey and Pikachu to follow. A banging noise was heard from the other side of the door. It flew in, followed by Donkey Kong and company. Everyone looked at the Ancient Minister, now standing in a corner. Samus walked closer.

"Who are you?" The robot clicked. Samus attempted to take off the hood, but the minister shyed away. Samus held her hand back. Suddenly, a monitor clicked on. Ganondorf started to talk from the other side.

"They know too much! Detonate the factory!" He pressed a button, causing the R.O.B.'s to grab the bombs. The minister rose and began to click. Ganondorf pressed the button once more, overriding the R.O.B.'s. Samus blasted at the Hologram.

"Show yourself!" The R.O.B.'s pulled the bombs open and set the countdown. Captain Falcon shook his hands.

"C'mon! We gotta go!" Samus looked over at Joey.

"Joey, we have to leave!" He turned to see Samus.

"Is there really nothing we can do? Is it their fate to be destroyed?" Samus grabbed Joey's arm.

"C'mon! You heard the captain, we have to leave!" Joey looked at the R.O.B.'s

"Yeah, I guess." Joey walked after Samus.

The crew ran down the hallway to the Great Falcon. As they hopped in, Samus heard a screeching from behind her. She turned around to see Meta-Ridley Everyone piled into the Great Falcon, leaving Samus and Joey on the roof. Captain Falcon started the ship, launching it forward, escaping Meta-Ridley. Meta-Ridley flew faster and tried to catch up with the Great Falcon.

"Guys?" Joey tapped the hull. "Guys!" Joey pulled out his Codec and called Captain Falcon. "Captain, can you please let us in?" Captain Falcon shook his head.

"Not until we're far enough away from that thing." Joey sighed.

"Alright." Joey signed off. He stood up and looked back at Meta-Ridley. "Well, are you ready for another fight?" Samus nodded.

"Let's go." Meta-Ridley flew closer. Joey shot the ceiling, causing sparks to fly from a nearby light. Meta-Ridley was temporarily blinded. Samus charged a shot and fired it at the creature. Meta-Ridley flew further back. "Joey, can you get him from here?" Joey nodded. He looked through his scope, and fired. Meta-Ridley screeched and fell to the ground. Joey pulled out his Codec and dialed Snake.

"Snake, I need you to open the hatch. We've disposed of Meta-Ridley." Snake nodded.

"Got it." Joey signed off. He looked to the front of the ship and noticed the hatch door open. Joey motioned to Samus for her to follow him in. Joey and Samus sat in the back of the ship, alone. Joey broke the ice.

"So, who should start?" Samus nodded.

"I guess I will." She sighed. "I'm sorry, Joey. He was a bounty hunter, and as you can well imagine, I also have a bounty on my head. We just tried to kill each other, and... I guess I won." Joey sighed.

"Is that what life is to you? Winning and losing?" Samus was quiet. "Because that's my life." Samus looked at Joey. "There's a four, a ten, another ten, and a six. IV X X VI. It was the fourth day of the tenth month. Ten people died, and it only took me six bullets. It was a bloody Sunday. That was like my trademark for a while, people hired me to take care of their 'problems'. I couldn't stand it." Joey looked at the ground. "Violence isn't always the answer." Samus looked at Joey. She smiled.

"So now we're free from secrets?" Joey thought to himself. "That's everything that comes to mind. But should I remember anything else, I'll be sure to tell you." Samus nodded.

"Same here. Oh, I almost forgot." She opened a compartment on the Chozo suit and handed Joey a roll of money. "Here's $25. I didn't use all the money you gave me at the fight." Joey looked at the roll of money.

"Oh, keep it, I don't need it." Samus looked at Joey.

"Really, you don't mind?" Joey shook his head.

"Nah, most of my money went towards cigarettes, but that's behind me. I have a lot more money now." Joey peered out the door to a cardboard box in th hallway. "You hear that, Snake? Smoking is bad for you." Joey heard a grumble come from the box. Joey and Samus laughed. Captain Falcon walked into the back room.

"Alright, it's time to decide a battle plan for taking back the Halberd." Joey nodded.

"And I've got the perfect plan." Joey pulled out his map. He pointed to the Halberd's sky deck. "If we get up here, we can get to the Game and Watches controlling the ship. They can give us access so we can shut down the security system and regain control." As Joey continued to explain, he heard a tapping against the window. Joey opened the window as a small bird flew in, a note in its beak. Joey took the note from the bird and read it.

"What is it?" Samus asked. Joey looked at the bird. He scribbled a note on the other side of the paper, tied it to the bird's leg and let it out the window. Joey turned back to Samus and Captain Falcon.

"It's nothing. Let's just..." Joey's voice got hoarse. He coughed. "Um... do you think we can plan this tomorrow?" Captain Falcon nodded.

"Of course." Joey walked to the back of the ship and laid down on a cot. Samus walked up behind him.

"Joey? Are you feeling alright?" Joey nodded.

"Yeah, I'll be fine in the morning." Samus frowned. She took off the chozo suit and sat down next to Joey.

"Good night." Joey sighed.

"Yeah. You too."


	5. Vertigo

Samus and Joey, Part 5  
Vertigo

Joey couldn't sleep. He turned over, seeing Samus dreaming. He noticed her arm draped around his waist. He didn't want to wake her and instead turned back to his other side. Samus opened her eyes a crack. She saw Joey and smiled. "How long have you been awake?" Joey looked back at Samus.

"I haven't slept." Samus frowned. She held Joey closer.

"I'm sorry to hear that." She kissed Joey's cheek. "It's still not technically morning yet, you can sleep for a little bit." Joey looked at his watch.

"I guess you're right." Joey closed his eyes.

~Minutes Later~

Joey woke up. He turned around. Samus was gone. He sighed, stood up, and walked to the deck. He couldn't find anyone. The ship had landed in a nearby canyon, and the hatch door was open. Joey stepped outside. He felt a slight chill as the wind hit him. Joey heard a voice speak to him. "Joey… Joey…" Joey opened his eyes. He was back in his bed. Samus was shaking him.

"Joey, c'mon, wake up. It's morning." Joey rolled over to see Samus. "Did you sleep well?" Joey tried to nod.

"I certainly don't feel refreshed." Samus sighed.

"There isn't anything that can make you happy, is there?" Joey faked a smile.

"Why did you wake me up?" Samus motioned her head towards the deck.

"Captain Falcon wants you to explain you plan to the crew." Joey nodded.

"Oh, alright." Joey stepped off the cot, dressed himself, and walked to the deck. He pointed at the map of the Halberd. "Alright, what do we know?" Snake pointed at the prison.

"The Prisoners have been freed, but they're still in the prison room."

"No they're not." Snake looked at Joey. "I received a letter from Zelda last night, telling me she was taking back the Halberd with all the other prisoners. She also mentioned hearing an Arwing in the sky. My thoughts are that she got Fox and Falco to help them escape." Just then, Captain Falcon received a transmission. It was from the Halberd.

"Hi, everyone!" It was Peach. Joey sighed. "I'm just here to let you know that the Halberd is a-okay. Everything's accounted for, and it's ready for travel over long distance. Also, we have Mr. Game and Watch, Fox, Falco, Diddy Kong, and Zelda." Joey perked up. "By the way, we have a request for a private transmission. Can everyone but Joey leave the room?" The crew nodded and left, leaving Joey and Samus in the room. Samus looked at Joey.

"You want me to go?" Joey nodded.

"I think that's best." Joey looked at the monitor. Zelda came on the other side. "Hi, Zel." Zelda nodded.

"Joey… about what you said earlier, that you loved me… I'm…" Zelda sighed. "I don't know if I feel the same way about you." Joey's heart skipped a beat. "I know that a while ago I told you that I did, but… I'm not sure anymore." Joey looked at the floor. "It's okay, though. You have Samus, and I know that she loves you." Joey looked at the monitor.

"But I don't know if I love her." Joey paused. "Is that really what you think? Or is there someone else telling you what to feel?" Zelda felt tears run down her cheeks. She wiped them away.

"I'm sorry, Joey. I just don't know what to think anymore." She sniffled. "I don't know anymore. I'm sorry. I just want you to be happy, and I know that with Samus you will be." Joey nodded.

"But is that how you really feel?" Zelda sighed.

"Joey, do you remember a while ago when you and Link saved me from Ganondorf?" Joey nodded.

"Of course. That was the same day I found the Triforce." Zelda looked at Joey.

"What?" Joey looked back at the monitor.

"Didn't I tell you? I probably didn't, now that I think about it. That was probably for the best." Zelda edged closer.

"What did you wish for?" Joey looked at the floor.

"I wished for you to be happy." Zelda smiled.

"Really? You took used your wish for me?" Joey nodded.

"But if you're crying, it clearly didn't work." Joey stood up and walked for the door. Zelda stopped him.

"Wait, don't go." Joey turned around. "Joey, that's the sweetest thing anyone's ever done for me." Joey was unmoved.

"But you still don't love me, do you?" Zelda's smile faded.

"Joey, I just don't think…" Joey shook his head.

"I don't want to hear it." Joey tapped a few keys on the keyboard, ending the transmission. Samus peeked her head in the doorway. "How much of that did you hear?" Samus shook her head.

"Only what Zelda said. You're very quiet." Joey looked at the floor. "Joey…" Joey looked up.

"Okay, so I told Zelda that I loved her. Now we have no secrets between us." Samus looked at Joey.

"Joey, I don't care if you love her or not." Joey sighed. "Joey…" Joey looked back at Samus. "Joey, I don't care about her or what you think. _I_ love you." Joey smiled.

"I thought so." Samus smiled and held Joey to herself. She kissed Joey on the cheek. "Alright, we need to plan an attack on the Subspace so none of this ever happens again." Samus nodded and opened the door. Snake, Captain Falcon, Donkey Kong and Pikachu walked in. Joey pointed at the map, explaining their line of attack.

~45 minutes later~

Captain Falcon guided the ship to set down in the canyon next to the Halberd. Everyone piled into the canyon. Snake held up a map. "Alright, now here's the plan for attacking the Subspace." Everyone gathered around and looked at the map. As Snake explained, Joey walked off to the Halberd. He walked around the ship, looking through different rooms. It was mostly unchanged. Joey heard a voice from behind him.

"Joey?" Joey turned around. It was Zelda. He turned back and walked away.

"Leave me alone." Zelda ran after him.

"Joey, please let me talk." Joey turned sharply and looked at Zelda.

"And why should I?" Zelda smiled.

"Joey, I figured out my feelings for you." She held Joey's hands. "I love you." Joey took his hands out of hers.

"No you don't." Zelda was puzzled. "You only claim to love me because I sacrificed something for you." Zelda frowned. "You don't love me, you love what I've done." Joey turned back and continued walking.

"And what if you're wrong?" Zelda walked after Joey. "What if it took me seven years, but I finally realized that I love you for you?" Joey smiled.

"Let me know when that happens." Zelda sighed and looked at the floor.

"But… I do love you." Samus walked in, seeing Zelda standing in the middle of the room. She walked over to see her.

"Zelda? What's going on?" Zelda looked up and saw Samus.

"Oh. It's you." Samus nodded.

"Where's Joey?" Zelda motioned toward the dormitories. "Thank you." Zelda walked back outside. Samus stepped into her room. She noticed Joey sitting on her bed. "Joey, are you feeling alright?" Joey tried to nod.

"I've been having all these strange dreams lately. It's like vertigo when I wake up, and it just gets painful to stay awake." Samus held Joey in one arm.

"I'm sorry." She pecked Joey's cheek and rested her head on his shoulder. Joey thought to himself. He turned to look at Samus.

"Do you think I'm good enough for you?" Samus looked at Joey.

"What do you mean?" Joey laughed.

"Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?" Samus giggled. "I just want to know if you think I'm good enough for you." Samus smiled.

"Joey, I think you're too good for _me_. I would be more worried about you than you would be worried about me. What with Zelda and all, I'm always worried you'll leave me." Joey smiled and kissed Samus.

"Well, let me just tell you now that you'll never have to worry about that." Samus rested her head on Joey's shoulder again. Joey heard a ringing in his ear. He laid Samus' head on a pillow and answered his Codec. It was Snake.

"Joey, we've explained the plan to everyone, and we're ready to execute. Give us a launch time." Joey looked at Samus.

"Tomorrow, 9 a.m." Snake nodded.

"I see, give the troops time to rest before the final battle?" Joey smiled.

"Yeah, something like that." Snake smiled.

"Got it." Snake signed off. Joey looked back at Samus. He ran his hands through her hair.

"You deserve a rest more than I do." He kissed Samus and lay down next to her. "Good night."


	6. Memories

Samus and Joey, Part 6

Memories

Joey looked at the ceiling. He couldn't sleep. As he turned over, he saw Samus, dreaming. "Déjà vu." Joey said, quietly. Samus opened her eyes and saw Joey, looking tired still.

"Hi, Joey." Joey smiled.

"Hi, Samus." She smiled and kissed him.

"Dare I ask?" Joey shook his head.

"I haven't slept." Samus looked at her clock.

"It's midnight. We have an early morning tomorrow. You should get some rest." Joey nodded. "Why do you think you have so much trouble sleeping?" Joey shrugged.

"I dunno." Joey stood up and walked to the bookshelf. He looked through the books, skimming the titles. "What do you have to read?" Samus yawned.

"Not a lot. I have some video game novels, if you wanna read those." Joey smiled.

"I've probably read them all. Do you have that book about the Shadow Moses Incident? I always liked that one." Samus shook her head.

"I don't think so. I think Snake borrowed it." Joey looked at the books.

"What's this one?" Samus walked over to the bookshelf.

"Metroid Zero Mission… oh that. That's a book I wrote after my first trip to Zebes." Joey looked at the cover.

"Do you mind if I read it?" Samus laughed.

"Why bother, I can just tell you the whole story. It'll save you about five hours." Joey nodded.

"Well, as you can imagine, I'm already very familiar with the story. After all, you are the great Samus Aran." Samus smiled.

"Alright. C'mon, I want to be comfortable while I tell this story. It's a bit long." She set the book back on the shelf and walked to her bed. Joey sat down next to her. "Alright. I guess it all started when I got a call from the Galactic Federation. They told me that there was this planet, Zebes, which was infested with Metroids. They also told me that there was something there that they wanted me to destroy, Mother Brain. So I arrived in Brinstar, which I received very little map of. I found my way through to a place called Kraid, where I met a monster of the same name. He was pretty freaky, if I do remember. Actually," Samus walked to the bookshelf and picked up the book. She brought it back and showed it to Joey. There was a picture of a large green alien-dinosaur.

"I think I've seen pictures of him before." Samus nodded.

"I snapped a few shots before I fought him. I scan something, and my suit takes snapshots of it. It's actually pretty cool." Joey smiled.

"What did your suit say about me?" Samus smiled.

"Absolutely nothing. You never talk about yourself." Joey shrugged.

"Maybe after you're done with your story." Samus nodded and continued.

"Well, after Kraid, I traveled around Zebes until I reached a place called Ridley. There, like Kraid, I fought some dinosaur thing called Ridley." Samus turned to a picture of Ridley. "After that, a door opened leading to Tourian, where I found the Metroids. And Mother Brain." Samus showed Joey several other pictures. "After I killed Mother Brain, I had to escape to my ship before Zebes blew up." Samus closed the book and smiled. "And that's about it. Now tell me about yourself." Joey sighed.

"Well I guarantee you that my story isn't nearly as exciting." Samus rested her head on Joey's shoulder.

"Tell me anyway." Joey nodded.

"Okay. I was born and raised in Hyrule. I lived in the Castle Town Market for ten years until I was called out on a quest with Link. We were to find the three spiritual stones and stop an ancient evil from taking over Hyrule. After that, Link went forward in time seven years. I sat around for that time doing nothing but wait. Zelda disappeared and after he returned we went on a quest to save her. When we found her, she sent us back in time seven years to when we were ten. Seven years after that, I fall asleep on a bench in the forest, next thing I know, you're standing over me wanting to fight." Samus smiled.

"And then what?" Joey laughed.

"And then I fell in love with a gorgeous blonde." Samus laughed.

"Do I know this girl?" Joey smiled.

"Yeah, you know her better than I do." Samus kissed Joey's cheek. She yawned and rested her head on her pillow.

"Well, I'm going to go to bed, I think you should too." Joey nodded.

"I suppose you're right." Joey sat down and shut his eyes.

~Two hours later~

Joey opened his eyes. He still hadn't slept. He walked to the bookshelf and skimmed more titles. Samus heard him and woke up.

"Joey…" She said, very tired. "What on earth are you doing?" She looked at the clock. "It's two in the morning." Joey nodded. "You know, Joey, maybe you have insomnia." Joey looked at Samus.

"What do you mean?" Samus tried to stand, but realizing she couldn't, instead sat back down.

"I mean, maybe you have trouble sleeping. How did you fall asleep in the past if you had trouble?" Joey thought to himself.

"I don't know. Normally I would just read, but that doesn't seem to help now." Joey sat back down next to Samus.

"Well, maybe you just need to be comfortable. Lie down." Joey sat down next to Samus. "Are you feeling too hot, too cold?" Joey shrugged.

"It is kind of cold in here." Samus pulled the bed covers to Joey's shoulders.

"There is that any better?" Joey laughed.

"You're acting like a mother." Samus smiled.

"What was your mother like?" Joey frowned.

"I didn't really know my parents. They died in the Hylian civil war. I learned a few years later that I had a brother who my mother took to the forest. A few years after that, I learned that my brother was a great hero." Samus rested her head on the edge of the bed.

"I'm sorry. You really should warn me about these horrible childhood stories before you tell me them." Joey laughed. "Do you think you can fall asleep now?" Joey smiled.

"Can I have a good-night kiss?" Samus smiled and kissed Joey. She climbed in the bed with Joey and shut off the lights.

"What time did you set the alarm for?" Joey sighed.

"Too soon."


	7. Taboo

Samus and Joey, Part 7

Tabuu

The alarm went off at 8 o'clock. Joey reached out and tapped the snooze. Samus opened her eyes. "Joey, did you even fall asleep last night?" Joey blinked.

"No, sorry." Samus sighed.

"Well, I guess you can sleep for the next few minutes before the alarm goes off again." Samus stood up and changed into her Zero Suit. "You do remember what the plan is, don't you?" Joey tried to nod. "I'm sorry, I'll let you sleep." Joey groaned and turned over. Samus pulled on her boots and readied her pistol. She looked at Joey and heard the alarm go off. Joey stood up and shut off the alarm. He looked up at Samus. "How are you feeling?" She asked. Joey limped to his closet and got changed.

"I've been better, but thanks for asking." Joey loaded his gun and stepped into Samus' room. She looked closely at him.

"You sure look rested." Joey smiled.

"I know, but I feel horrible." Samus smiled.

"I'm sorry to hear that." She stepped out of the room, followed by Joey. They walked to the dining hall. Joey dragged behind, walking slower. Samus turned around and stopped. Joey walked into Samus, not looking up. She giggled, lifting his head. "Really, why so glum?" Joey groaned. "Alright, you can tell me later. Maybe when this is all over." Joey nodded. "C'mon, let's go eat." Joey walked forward, bumping into walls. Samus turned around again. "Geez, you can't do anything by yourself, can you?" Samus grabbed Joey's hand and walked him to the dining hall. As they got in line, Joey finally snapped out of his trance.

"Where are we?" he asked. Samus turned around.

"Oh, good. You're really awake now." Joey nodded. "How do you feel?" Joey groaned.

"Still not good." Samus smiled.

"Well, all I can say is 'feel better.'" Joey smiled.

"Thank you." Samus stepped forward in the line until they were served. She and Joey sat down next to each other at the table. Peach sat down across from them. She smiled.

"Hey, guys!" Joey's smile faded.

"Oh. Hi, Peach." Peach edged closer.

"So what's new with you guys?" Joey sighed.

"What do you want, Peach?" Peach giggled.

"I just wanna see how my best friends are doing." Joey faked a smile.

"Great. Fantastic." Samus nodded. Peach clapped her hands together.

"Awesome! I am so excited for today! What about you guys?" Samus smiled.

"Definitely," Samus said, sarcastically. A voice came on the PA. It was Meta-Knight.

"Brawlers to the drop station. We are ready to infiltrate the subspace." Joey finished his breakfast and walked to the deck, followed by Samus. They each grabbed a parachute and stood by everyone else as they got ready to drop into the subspace. Meta-Knight's voice came on the PA again. "3… 2… 1… Go!" The door dropped, de-pressurizing the room. Joey felt the cold air run past him. Joey looked at Snake.

"Just like old times, right Snake?" Snake nodded, smiling. Samus held Joey's hand as they leapt out into the purple haze.

As they landed inside, they found themselves at a staircase. Everyone else soon arrived. Mario was the first to speak.

"Where are we?" he asked. As Mario looked around, he saw a giant, blue, winged humanoid fly toward them. He grabbed several orbs floating around the room and fired them at everybody. They all ran away, but to no avail. The orbs hit the crew, turning them all into trophies. Joey ran as fast as he could. He heard screaming coming from behind him. As he turned around, he saw Snake had been hit in the back, and started to change. Joey ran over to him.

"Snake? Snake?" Joey knelt down next to Snake's trophy. "Snaaaaaake!" Joey tapped his ear. He contacted Meta-Knight.

"Meta-Knight!" Joey yelled into the codec. "We have to retreat, we're dangerously outnumbered!" He heard nothing but static on the other side. "Damn!" He continued to run away, until he remembered something. He turned and ran into the fire, dodging the orbs flying at him. He came to a screeching halt next to a body on the floor. "Samus." She looked up at Joey.

"Hey... Joey." She tried to stand, but was unable to.

"It's okay, I'll get you out of this." Samus shook her head.

"No. Don't." Joey knelt down and held Samus in his arms. "Joey, when I first came here, I was just a pretty face. People would always flirt with me, invite me to places, but then you came along." She reached her hand up and touched Joey's face. "You were different." At that time, everything slowed to a stop around them. "You didn't try anything, I wasn't sure what that meant at first, but then I learned everything. You were in love with someone else, and you couldn't even notice another girl." Joey brushed a tear out of his eye. "But a few things happened along the way, and you finally noticed me. That was the happiest day of my life. I realized that day, no matter how many people like you, there's only one person for you." Samus started to cry. "You're my only person... and I feel horrible that it took me so long to realize it." Joey's tears fell off his face and tapped Samus. "You've shown me how much fun I can have with other people." She moved her hands to the floor and raised herself to a sitting position. "Joey..." She wrapped her arms around Joey and kissed him. Joey broke off and tried to pick Samus up.

"I'm sorry, but I can't let you go." He carried her off to the far end of the battlefield, away from the staircase. Samus held onto Joey for dear life. Joey heard a whirring sound in his ear. As he turned around, an orb hit Samus. She fell to the ground as a trophy. Joey reached out his hand and grabbed the base of the trophy. "Samus..." He cried even more. "I never got to tell her-" With that, another orb came flying at Joey. He saw it before it hit him and ran out of the way, carrying the trophy. The orb was moving just a bit faster than Joey was running. After a few minutes, he stopped running and clutched the Samus trophy to his chest. The orb flew around him and hit him in the back. Joey's eyesight started to fade. The last thing he saw was Samus holding out her hand. Joey reached for her and felt a warmth in his grip.


	8. The Greatest Challenge

Samus & Joey, Part 8

The Greatest Challenge

Joey opened his eyes. He was in a small, grassy field. There was the occasional patch of flowers every few feet. Joey sat up and looked around. He saw a figure standing beneath a tree in the distance. He tried to stand, but found it a little hard to do so. He limped over to the tree and looked to the person. He could clearly identify them as a girl, but that was it. She looked off into the horizon, but somehow noticed Joey.

"It's lovely, isn't it?" Joey followed her gaze. "This world, I mean." Joey smiled for a fraction of a second.

"Where is this place?" The girl smiled.

"This is where all people go eventually." Joey recognized the voice he heard.

"Who are you?" The girl sat down, showing her face in the light. She looked just like Samus.

"I'm special." Joey sat down next to her. "I show everyone who they care about most. You took some time, though. I had trouble finding who you love." Joey frowned.

"So I guess you know how I feel about her." The girl shook her head.

"No, actually, I don't. I picked Samus because she loves you." Joey felt his heart beat faster.

"What do you really look like?" The girl laid back in the flowers.

"I don't like it very much. I like Samus better." Joey smiled.

"Just show me." The girl slowly changed into a beautiful girl with long, reddish hair. Joey looked her over. "You look very familiar." The girl brushed her hair out of her eyes. "What's your name?" The girl held her hand out to Joey.

"My name is Rosemary, but you can call me Rose." Joey felt a warmth build up inside him. He slowly was lifted into the air. "Looks like you've been given another chance." Joey took one last look at the field, and closed his eyes.

~Later~

Joey woke up in the subspace. He opened his eyes and saw Samus, still asleep. "Sa… Samus?" He looked down and noticed he was still holding her hand. "Samus?" He sat up. "Sammie?" He picked her up and looked at her eyes. "Samus!" He shook her, trying to wake her up. "Samus, wake up!" Luigi ran next to Joey.

"Joey! What's going on?" Luigi knelt down next to Joey.

"She won't wake up." Luigi reached into his pocket for something. He pulled out the mushroom Joey had given him.

"Here, try this." Joey took the mushroom and stuck it in Samus' mouth. The color came back to her face after a few seconds. She started coughing, and eventually opened her eyes.

"God, what was that?" She coughed once more. "Tasted like bad garlic." Joey smiled and hugged her.

"Samus!" She was still unaware of what had just happened. "I thought you..." Joey stopped talking. Samus smiled.

"Um… thanks, I think." She let go of Joey. "What just happened?" Joey held Samus' hands.

"It was nothing, don't worry about it." Samus smiled.

"Well, I guess-"

"Hey, guys!" Samus and Joey looked at Ike, who was pointing at the staircase. "That thing went this way! We have to get him!" Everyone slowly made their way to the staircase. Joey sighed, stood up, and pulled Samus up next to him.

"Come on, let's go."

The group of smashers approached the staircase. Mario, judging himself as the leader, took the first step up. There was nothing holding him back, so he continued up. The other smashers slowly walked up after him, some later than others.

Joey turned around and saw Zelda and Link standing over Gannondorf's trophy. Link shook his head and walked away. Zelda, however, decided to revive Gannondorf. Joey turned back and saw that Samus had already started walking. He ran after her. He couldn't help but notice that she was limping. She turned around, seeing Joey behind her.

"Hey Joey," she said. Joey ran to her side.

"Need some help?" Samus looked at her leg, then back at Joey.

"If you could." Samus draped an arm around Joey, balancing herself. They were both silent for a while.

"You really scared me, there." Samus looked at Joey.

"What do you mean?" Joey smiled.

"I mean when you were passed out." He stopped and turned to Samus. "Here, I'll just carry you the rest of the way." Joey picked her up and continued to walk up the stairs. "I had this crazy dream," he continued. "We both went to this beautiful looking meadow. There was this lone tree on top of a small hill."

"What kind of tree?" Samus asked.

"Big tree. Oak, I think." Joey looked at Samus. "Does it matter?" She giggled. "There were these patches of flowers every now and then, it made the place seem a bit nicer. There was this... I can't describe it, really. It was a kind of fog, I guess, only it was really thin. You could see right through it, but it was kinda hazy." Samus pressed her head to Joey's chest.

"It sounds nice." Joey smiled and nodded.

"It was, for the most part." Samus smiled and closed her eyes. "You were there, too. I think I already told you that." She nodded, falling asleep. "Only you weren't really you," he continued. Samus just barely opened her eyes.

"Who was I, then?" Joey shrugged.

"I really don't know." He paused. "You just weren't... _you_."

They reached the top of the stairs a few minutes later. Joey gently let Samus to her feet. She landed gracefully, and they entered the Great Maze.

As they stepped through the door, they started to fly through a stream of flashing colors and rings. It seemed wonderful, at first, to be able to fly. After a few minutes, they showed up on a large floating platform. Much like the one where the whole Subspace mess started. Everyone had gone ahead, aside from Snake, leaving the three alone. Zelda showed up almost immediately after Samus stepped through the door. Samus, startled by the sound of the door, whipped out her pistol and turned around. She lowered it upon recognizing the face.

"Oh, it's only you." She put the pistol away. "What are you doing here alone? Where's Link?"

"He's not with you?" Zelda turned back to the door. "Well, I'm sure he's here somewhere." She turned back and walked closer to the other three. "Let's go, I guess." Joey smiled and turned to Samus.

"Still need help walking?" Samus tried to take a few steps, stumbling every now and then.

"If you could just help me balance," she said. Joey placed her arm around his shoulder and started walking.

"Better?" She nodded.

"Much, thank you."

They all walked through the next door, Joey barely noticing a black haze come from the door. He disregarded it and stepped through.

On the other side of the door, there was a dark, cloudy area, much like the subspace. Samus sat down. "Sorry, I just need to rest for a second." Joey nodded.

"It's okay. Take all the time you need." Snake looked around the area.

"This place looks really creepy." He lit a cigarette. "Anybody else want one?" No one answered. "Okay."

Samus tried to sit up, but her leg kept her down. "Sammie, you really shouldn't try and move too much," Joey said. "Here, let me see what I have." Joey reached into his pockets, and turned up empty-handed. "Snake!" The agent turned around. "Do you have a bandage, some gauze, anything?"

Snake tossed Joey a small box. Joey immediately opened it up, rummaged through it, and pulled out a wrap of gauze. He unraveled it, and then looked up at Samus. "Where exactly does your leg hurt?" Samus pointed at her knee.

"Right about there." Joey nodded and started to wrap her leg.

"Now I still think you should walk a little slower. Maybe put a little less pressure on it." He finished wrapping her leg. "You're not alone, Samus. We're here to fight by your side, and even for you. You don't need to depend on yourself all the time." Joey looked into Samus' eyes. "We're your friends, Sammie. We can help you." He leaned in and pecked her cheek. He stood up and extended a hand to Samus. "Come on, let's go."

At that instant, a charge beam hit Joey in the back. He collapsed in pain, groaning loudly. Samus looked up and saw a shadowy version of her power suit. Samus stood up quickly, her leg writhing in pain, and donned her power suit with no more than just pure concentration.

Joey's eyes were still cracked open. He could see Samus, Snake and Zelda fighting something that looked like... another Samus. He was beyond confused, but it didn't really bother him.

Sooner than it had started, the fight was over. Samus's power suit disappeared, and she was soon at Joey's side again. "What..." Joey rolled over onto Samus's lap. "What was that?" He asked quietly.

"I don't know." Samus lifted Joey's head. "Will you be alright?"

Joey chuckled. "I think it's _your_ turn to carry _me_." Samus smiled.

"I'm glad you're okay." They both stood and limped to the new door on the corner of the platform. "I really hope that we're almost done here."

The door led to yet another subspace room. Everyone else who wasn't already there slowly appeared. They all came out of identical looking doors, all of which shut behind them. Zelda and Snake appeared a bit later, both apparently missing the door Samus and Joey went through.

"What happened?" Joey asked Luigi.

"It was crazy!" he said back. "I was attacked by a guy who looked just like me! He was all shadowy and evil-looking, and he knew every move that I did!" Samus and Joey shared a glance. They both had the same thought. "Anyways," Luigi continued, drawing the others attention again. "This door is supposed to lead to that evil blue guy." Samus looked over Luigi's head to a large, gray door far in the distance.

"I think we should all rest first," Samus said, her pain finally getting the best of her. Her knees buckled underneath her, Joey collapsing as well. Some people still decided to head on through the door, not knowing what could lie ahead.

Samus curled up next to Joey. "Are we almost done here?" she asked. "I'm really tired." Joey nodded, also unable to continue standing.

"Yeah, I think so." He looked at the door. "Once that creepy blue guy is gone, this whole place will disappear and we can all go home."

Samus smiled. "And then I can finally rest again?" Joey smiled.

"And then we can all rest again." Joey brushed his hand through Samus' hair. "And there's gonna be a big meal for all of us."

Samus giggled, her eyes closing. "I'm really tired," she said. Joey lifted her head.

"We're almost done here. I promise." Joey looked up, noticing everyone else had gone. "Come on, we'd better go."

They both stood up and limped to the door. Neither of them had any idea what was through it, but it couldn't be much worse than the rest of the day had already been.

_Author's Notes_

_Yeah. Sorry for not posting anything for half of a year. I've been busy. You know, school and stuff. But I'm back! And I promise that I'll upload more in a short while. Especially because my Metroid addiction is back. So there will be another chapter up soon. Promise. Thanks for reading, and please leave reviews._


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